Is it easier to go from an operational role to VC or from VC into an operational role?
Jason M. Lemkin Part of the answer(s) depends on how long you’ve done either. Venture Capital is an incredibly specialized skill set. If you’ve been an associate, analyst or principal for a few years … those skills can (sort of, kind of) translate...
Just how deep is the decline in venture investment in the fourth quarter of 2015?
Jason M. Lemkin In SaaS, I believe roughly in Q4 we went through about a 50% multiple compression. I.e., valuations sort of fell by half. (Although it’s hard to see this from the headline #s around amounts raised, for the reasons noted below.) And as part of...
Why is Pivotal Labs credited with playing such an important role in the development culture of Silicon Valley’s biggest brands?
Jason M. Lemkin I’m not a true expert here but my observation is that IF (x) you have ample capital, and (y) want to do something reasonably hard, where you need a whole bunch of very talented, experienced web engineers, (z) which are impossible to get,...
If you had the chance to invest alongside top VCs like Accel and Sequoia, would you give it a second thought?
Jason M. Lemkin Well … like many things … it depends. If you could be an LP in Sequoia’s core early-stage fund, and you have a long time horizon … yes you should do that. But … I think you are asking a different question. Which is should...
Pricing a monthly SaaS plan: what sounds better? $98/mo or $89/mo?
Jason M. Lemkin It doesn’t matter.  Or at least — it shouldn’t. Unless you are selling a true commodity — you are already well past the $5 a month or Free discretionary price points. And you are well within the “stick it on my credit...
Why do so many VC lack actual technical skills?
Jason M. Lemkin Because it doesn’t matter. First, middle and later stage investments (post-traction) don’t really require you to understand the technology or even the product per se. Because by then … it’s proven. However the magic dust...
Is a startup that fails to raise additional capital after its Series A considered a failure?
Jason M. Lemkin No, unless it’s running out of money and goes under. There are plenty of fairly strong start-ups that just try to raise their Series B (or Series A, whatever) just not quite at the right time. The revenue is a little light. The burn is a little...
What’s the difference between a CEO and president of a startup corporation?
Jason M. Lemkin The difference is that they’ve worked out ego issues. Which is a good thing. Co-CEOs are sometimes OK. But really, it’s confusing — and often shows ego issues unresolved among the founders. Who’s the CEO? The VCs want to...
(Almost) 10x in 24 Months
Just modestly interesting: Now: 24 months ago, when these stats rolled out: Ok will be 10x in 25 months, not 24. Too bad it’s not ARR 🙂 View original question on quora
Is Box undervalued right now?
Jason M. Lemkin To me, for a true recurring revenue SaaS company at scale, the ultimate questions are … What barriers are there to it continuing to recur? And what barriers are there to it building on top of itself? Box is at $300,000,000+ in ARR and still...
As a 40 year old am I too old to found another software startup? I’ve founded 4 with varying success.
Jason M. Lemkin For you – maybe. It’s not your chronological age I’m concerned about. It’s that you are asking the question. And it’s a good question. The more experienced you get, the easier it gets in SaaS and software. You know the...
How do most successful startups in Silicon Valley raise money?
Jason M. Lemkin They raise money on the extremely small chance (<1%) they could be worth billions of dollars. The #1 rookie move I see is not painting this picture. VCs would much rather invest in something with a perceived 2% chance of being worth $2 billion than...
Will Twitter ever be acquired?
Jason M. Lemkin With an $18b market cap today, Twitter would be an “easy” acquisition for any of the tech giants including Facebook, Google, etc. And at a $2b+ revenue run rate, it would not be hugely expensive. Facebook is already worth $300 billion and...
Are any VCs returning money to investors due to lack of great investment opportunities?
Jason M. Lemkin Paul Cohn has all the right answers here. It did happen with a few ’00-’01 vintage type funds that were massively over funded, see, e.g.: VC Mavericks / Crosspoint Venture Partners puts forth some provocative views on investing Top quartile...
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